This invention relates to a connector for use in electric and electronic appliances such as a server, personal computer (PC), hard disk drive (HDD) and the like, and more particularly to a connector with a structure for preventing contact portions of contacts from being deformed into a fitting opening for inserting a connecting object such as a flexible printed circuit board, in the case that a distance between the contact portions and fixed portions of the contacts is 2 mm or more.
In many cases, a connector generally comprises contacts made of a metal in continuity with a connecting object, and a housing made of an insulating material for keeping the contacts insulated from one another. The contacts each comprise a contact portion adapted to contact the connecting object, a fixed portion fixed to the housing and a connection portion to be connected to a substrate.
As examples of connectors, incorporated herein are Japanese Utility Model Application Opened No. H05-79,867 (Patent Literature 1), Japanese Utility Model Application Opened No. H06-13,064 (Patent Literature 2), and Japanese Patent Application Opened No. 2001-6,780 (Patent Literature 3).
Patent Literature 1
According to the abstract of the Japanese Utility Model Application Opened No. H05-79,867, disclosed is an electrical connector of a cold welding type including conductive contacts (1) each having a U-slit at its terminal, a body (2) for accommodating, holding and fixing the contacts (1), and a cover (3) pushing a cable (4) against the terminals (13) of said contacts (1) for press-fitting conductors of the cable (4) into the U-slits (131) of the terminals (13) of said contacts (1), wherein the body (2) is provided with extending pedestals (21) in the proximity of the U-slits (131) of the terminals (13) of the contacts (1) rising from the body, the extending pedestals (21) having a height enabling the connected cable to be embraced between the pedestals (21) and the cover (3) for the purpose of preventing the connected cable from loosening or disconnecting.
Incidentally, the claim 1 of this case recites an electrical connector of a cold welding type, including conductive contacts each having a U-slit at its terminal, a body for accommodating, holding and fixing the contacts, and a cover for pushing said cable to the terminals of said contacts for press-fitting conductors of the cable into the U-slits of the terminals of said contacts, wherein said body is provided with pedestals extending from said body in the proximity of the U-slits of the terminals of the contacts rising from said body.
Patent Literature 2
According to the abstract of the Japanese Utility Model Application Opened No. H06-13,064, disclosed is a connector with a number of contacts press-fitted and fixed in a row in a housing of a synthetic resin, wherein the contacts are each formed with a press-fitting protrusion, and the press-fitting protrusions extend in the directions substantially perpendicular to the direction in which the contacts are arranged in alignment with one another, for the purpose of obtaining a connector whose housing is not warped.
Incidentally, claim 1 of this case recites a connector with a number of contacts press-fitted and fixed in a row in a housing of a synthetic resin, wherein said number of contacts are each provided with a press-fitting protrusion on a press-fitting part of the contact to be press-fitted in the housing, and the press-fitting protrusions extend in the directions perpendicular to the direction in which the contacts are arranged in alignment with one another. Claim 2 recites the connector with contacts press-fitted as claimed in claim 1, wherein the housing has inserting grooves for inserting contacts portions of the contacts adapted to contact mating contacts, and the press-fitting protrusions of the contacts are provided at locations which cause contact portions of said contacts to separate from bottoms of the inserting grooves.
Patent Literature 3
According to the abstract of the Japanese Patent Application Opened No. 2001-6,780, this invention has an object to provide an electrical connector capable of being miniaturized and improving reliability in soldering connection and having terminals arranged in multistage. Disclosed is an electrical connector including a plurality of terminals 5, 11 each formed by working a metal plate into a substantially band-shape and arranged on each of arrangement surfaces in plural steps and in parallel with each other formed in an insulating housing 1 in a manner that a contact portion 7, 12 forming one end of the terminal is positioned on the arrangement surface, and a leg 9, 14 extending from the other end of the terminal on each of the corresponding steps is formed with a connection portion 10, 15 extending from the housing and located in the same plane, wherein at least one terminal 5 of the terminals on the respective steps located in corresponding positions is formed with a plurality of legs 9 at an interval in its width direction of the terminal, and the terminal 11 on the other step has a leg 14 positioned within said interval in said width direction, and wherein the connection portions 10, 15 of the terminals on the respective steps located the corresponding positions are positioned in substantially the same row in said width direction on one plane.
Incidentally, claim 1 of this case recites an electrical connector including a plurality of terminals each formed by working a metal plate into a substantially band-shape and arranged on each of arrangement surfaces in plural steps and in parallel with each other formed in an insulating housing 1 in a manner that a contact portion forming one end of the terminal is positioned on the arrangement surface, and a leg extending from the other end of the terminal on each of the corresponding steps is formed with a connection portion extending from the arrangement surface and located in the same plane, wherein at least one terminal of the terminals on the respective steps located in corresponding positions is formed with a plurality of legs at an interval in its width direction of the terminal, and the terminal on the other step has a leg positioned within said interval in said width direction, and wherein the connection portions of the terminals on the respective steps located the corresponding positions are positioned in substantially the same row in said width direction on one plane. Claim 2 recites the electrical connector with terminals arranged in multistage as claimed in claim 1, wherein the terminals having a plurality of the legs are power-supply terminals, and the other terminals are signal terminals. Claim 3 recites the electrical connector with terminals arranged in multistage as claimed in claim 2, wherein the power-supply terminals have the two legs whose ends are connection portions to be connected to circuits of a circuit substrate by soldering. Claim 4 recites the electrical connector with terminals arranged in multistage as claimed in claim 2, wherein the power-supply terminals have the three legs whose ends are connection portions to be connected to circuits of a circuit substrate by soldering. Claim 5 recites the electrical connector with terminals arranged in multistage as claimed in claim 2, wherein the power-supply terminals have the four legs whose ends are connection portions to be connected to circuits of a circuit substrate by soldering.
With the contacts disclosed in the above Patent Literatures 1 to 3, the contact portions of the contacts adapted to contact a connecting object are each arranged so that the wall of the housing (insulator) is located on the opposite side of the contact portion (refer to FIGS. 1, 4 and 5 of the Patent Literature 1, FIG. 1 of the Patent Literature 2, and FIG. 2 of the Patent Literature 3), and there are contacts having a comparatively long distance between the contact portions and fixed portions.
When the distance between the contact portions and fixed portions is long, the contact portion of the contact is a free end so that the contact portion tends to collapse about the fixed portion as a fulcrum toward the center of a fitting opening by a connecting object in a cantilevered manner. Such a collapse of the contact portions results in buckling and damage of the contacts and further defective or failed electrical connection.